Lovers of Hate (Bryan Poyser | Austin, TX | 93 min.)Sibling rivalry can be alternately tragic and funny, but in Bryan Poyser's Lovers of Hate, it's both. The Austin-based director's savage comedy centers on floundering writer Rudy (Chris Doubek, co-star of the 2010 Rooftop Films entry The Happy Poet) and his successful brother Paul (Alex Karpovsky, co-star of the 2010 Rooftop Films entry Tiny Furniture), a children's book author who stole all of Rudy's ideas. Jobless and living out of his car, Rudy convinces his crestfallen ex-girlfriend Diana (Heather Kafka) to pretend they're still together when Paul passes through town on a business trip. Nevertheless, Paul figures out the trick and confronts his brother about his troubles, although there's more to their relationship than meets the eye.

On a whim, Rudy travels out to Park City in the hopes of surprising Paul at his spacious vacation condo. But when his brother comes home with an affectionate embrace with a certain woman from Rudy's recent past, he decides to keep his presence in the house a mystery. What follows is an ingenious filmmaking conceit: Rudy hides in the shadows, spying on Paul and Diana as they engage in a secret liaison and revel in candid pillow talk. Poyser repeatedly shifts perspective among his three characters, combining suspense with slapstick comedy and keeping us guessing whether Paul and Diana will notice their unexpected visitor. Over time, however, Rudy begins to confront the possibility that he has managed to remain invisible for so long because he always has been.

Predominantly shot on location in Park City, Lovers of Hate appropriately premiered in dramatic competition at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival, where it was met with widespread critical acclaim. It followed up that premiere with an equally positive homecoming celebration at the South by Southwest Film Festival. Poyser, whose directorial debut Dear Pillow gained similar acclaim following its Slamdance Film Festival premiere in 2006, wins over audiences with his delectable blend of believable characters, comically awkward scenarios, and frank sexual dialogue. The bulk of the movie's appeal comes from the explosive onscreen chemistry of Doubek and Karpovsky, himself a writer-director whose features The Hole Story and Woodpecker screened at Rooftop Films in previous years. An IFC Films release, this special sneak preview gives you a first glimpse of Lovers of Hate before it hits theaters.

Rooftop Films is a New York based non-profit whose mission is to engage diverse communities by showing independent movies in outdoor locations, producing new films, coordinating youth media education, and renting equipment at low cost to artists.